The IYA2009 is still growing: we have 126 National Nodes and we would like to take this opportunity to welcome theRepublic of Belarus and DPR Korea, our latest National Nodes, to IYA2009.

IYA2009 Questionnaire to SPoCs

We have received questionnaires from most of you, and are now processing the data before a short report will be produced. Thank you very much to all of you who have sent the questionnaire.

IYA2009 New Website

After weeks of hard work the astronomy2009.org website has undergone an overhaul and now boasts improved design, functionality, navigation and resources! Receiving over 1500 visitors every day, it is gaining popularity and we are sure that this number will grow with time. More user-friendly than ever, the site provides an easy way to keep in touch with IYA2009 developments. We are always eager for your feedback, so please feel free to e-mail us at iya2009@eso.org with any suggestions. I would like to express my gratitude to the IYA2009 and ESA/Hubble team for the hard work! Please note that now you can’t update your National page, so if you need to update your contact details, please send us an e-mail. It’s our hope that all the National Nodes will have a National webpage before the end of the year.

The 100 Hours of Astronomy global Cornerstone project has created a mailing list that will be used to keep everyone informed of plans and news.If you want to know the latest on what is happening with this major event in IYA2009, sign up for this free service on the 100 Hours of Astronomy website at www.100hoursofastronomy.org .

Report from European Planetary Science Congress Session: International Year of Astronomy 2009

With IYA2009 seeming to approach faster than ever, preparations have gone into over-drive. Europlanet’s European Planetary Science Congress, held this year in the German city of Münster,Germany is well-known for its sessions on public engagement. The session “Outreach and Amateur Astronomy” was dedicated to IYA2009 talks, read the full report from Lee Pullen on the IYA2009 website: http://www.astronomy2009.org/resources/documents/detail/iya2009_epsc_report_lp/